SAN ANTONIO — It’s been all about the heat and little about the rain lately in San Antonio, which led the Edwards Aquifer Authority (EAA) to declare Stage 3 permit reductions on the San Antonio and Uvalde pools Monday.
The announcement doesn't affect San Antonio Water System (SAWS) customers and watering restrictions on area households. SAWS remains in Stage 2 water restrictions.
Any change in permit reductions or watering stages are determined by the 10-day average level of the J-17 index well in San Antonio and the J-27 index well in Uvalde. Both have reached the criteria to implement Stage 3.
But while the EAA declared Stage 3, SAWS officials say similarly tiered restrictions aren't yet planned for San Antonio households, thanks to alternative sources of water.
“We expected a drop in rain and high outdoor watering demand to set in about now,” said SAWS spokesperson Anne Hayden. “That is why SAWS invested in the 15 water projects from nine sources of water."
Hayden also reminds SAWS customers about the importance of adhering to Stage 2 watering rules since increasing outdoor water could result in doubling or even tripling your water bill.
Those rules include using sprinklers just once a week, based on the last number of your address:
- If your home address ends in 0 or 1, you water Monday.
- If your home address ends in 2 or 3, you water Tuesday.
- If your home address ends in 4 or 5, you water Wednesday.
- If your home address ends in 6 or 7, you water Thursday.
- If your home address ends in 8 or 9, you water Friday.
As part of Stage 2, watering is limited for San Antonio homeowners to before 11 a.m. or after 7 p.m., with watering not allowed on the weekends. You can always hand-water whenever needed. Find more information on Stage 2 SAWS restrictions here.
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